Apparently, with the extra time to prepare some students took it upon themselves to make an initially-normal meal something akin to an actual celebration. The Black Eagles in particular seemed to have arranged for it to last the entire free day at the end of the week. Dimitri and Claude, other main supporters of the festivities, even made sure Edelgard would be finished her makeup work beforehand so she wouldn't have to miss anything.

The mood was lighter than it had been ever since the year started. Edelgard alternated between being grateful and terrified, for very little reason behind the latter aside from her knowledge that this wouldn't last. Her recent trip to Enbarr was made to assure that. Her actions could very well mean that these people never have such a carefree time in the future.

It did assure her, however, that she was aware of that damage, unlike some others. She resolved to minimize it as much as possible.

Edelgard still tried to enjoy it if she could. A good portion of the others must have noticed some hesitance, trying rather hardly to make sure the victory was properly celebrated. Monica switched between shooing them away or encouraging them; Hubert just watched without much comments.

During the 'feast' itself, she ate and spoke with the other house leaders. Claude did briefly ask after her going to Enbarr, but otherwise a majority of the conversation focused on the mock battle itself. The Golden Deer leader was interested to hear what kind of strategies were put into it, even if it wasn't anything especially grand. The strategy itself had been decided on prior to the battle; Edelgard only improvised when the situation called for it. Dimitri insisted she was understating it.

After eating, she continued chatting for a little bit before leaving. Even standing near the pond, she could hear the rest of the students talking happily. She wondered how long it would last; the celebrations would likely continue until someone came in and made them go to their rooms. They still had class in the morning, so it seemed likely that Hanneman would ask them to quiet down in the next hour or two.

"I didn't think you would step out this early. I expected to be the first, to be honest."

Edelgard glanced behind her, and nodded a greeting to Dimitri. "I'll come back in a few minutes. I wanted a little bit of fresh air."

"I won't force you back," Dimitri replied, shaking his head. "I needed to step out myself for a moment—the others are nothing if not excited, at least."

"Well, I'm not doing anything. I won't deny the company."

Dimitri nodded, only standing next to her. After a second, to avoid her brooding, she spoke.

"Hubert's looking for me, isn't he?"

"I passed him on my way out. I offered to check on you instead."

"He wouldn't…necessarily be 'checking on' me. I still have some work to do, left over from the trip to Enbarr." More accurately, perhaps, is that she now had other arrangements she had to manage without drawing Rhea's attention.

"No one else can take care of it for now?"

"I'll be busy long after graduation, I'm afraid." She looked at him. "Things won't stay the same for very long, Dimitri. Change will come."

Dimitri frowned and sighed. "You noticed it too, then? This…feels a bit fragile. If there's another scare like Flayn disappearing, they'll fall silent in an instant."

She wasn't going to correct him, looking ahead of her again. She didn't know if he would understand if she did truly explain what she meant.

Dimitri spoke up again after a few minutes.

"The month after this one is the ball, if I recall."

Edelgard actually laughed. "That's an interesting topic changer; from grim reminders to a mention of one of the academy's greatest traditions."

"I know," Dimitri replied, having his own sheepish chuckle. "Still, are you looking forward to it?"

"As much as I dare. My parents first met on that night; hearing that was one of my favorite stories as a child."

"I hope everything goes well, then. I could distract Hubert if you want to go into the Goddess Tower."

"Thank you for the offer, but it's…something of an unlikely hope at this point, that I could go there, much less meet anyone like they did. I doubt I'll have a moment to myself during the ball regardless."

He started to carry on with the conversation, but was interrupted before he could say anything.

"Ah! Your Highness!"

Edelgard turned at Monica's voice, and she continued.

"It's a bit cold to be out here for too long," Monica said. If she noticed Dimitri, she didn't seem to acknowledge him. "Lady Rhea's coming to present the reward for winning."

"I'll head back inside now, then. Thank you for letting me know."

Monica smiled at the praise, and Dimitri followed them to the dining hall as well. Rhea came after a few minutes to give Edelgard—representing the Black Eagle class—the class's prize, which was then passed on to Manuela for proper distribution. It wasn't anything special; just a weapon they were expected to use in the future.

She opted to head to her room shortly afterwards, announcing her departure to a few people that were most likely to want her. She expected to hear more warnings of Hubert in the morning.